In recent years, various types of vehicles have been manufactured with adjustable steering wheels. These wheels have been made adjustable primarily to accommodate the vehicle operator. More particularly, since the size of the operator of the vehicle will vary from one operator to the other, the steering wheel has been made adjustable to place it in a position of maximum comfort and ease of manipulation for the operator.
Typically, the steering wheel is mounted on a steering column that is pivotally connected to a support. A locking mechanism will lock the steering column and, hence, the steering wheel in one of a plurality of discrete positions. The operator can adjust the steering wheel by unlocking the locking mechanism, and then manually moving the steering wheel to pivot the steering column to a new position, in which the locking mechanism is again locked.
One disadvantage with the prior adjustable steering wheels is that the locking mechanism is usually easily released or unlocked by the manipulation of an accessible lever or pin. Since such a lever and such a pin are easily accessible by the operator, it is possible, during the operation of the vehicle, for the operator's legs or arms to inadvertently unlock the lock. Consequently, during movement of the vehicle while it is being steered, the steering wheel can be unintentionally moved to a position which does not provide maximum comfort or ease of manipulation for the operator.
Furthermore, in all positions of the steering wheel, the steering column will impart a load substantially on the pivot. This load will cause fatigue and will shorten the life of the pivot. Still further, during movement of the steering wheel, from one position to the other, the steering column and locking mechanism are separated. Large forces are exerted during this free moving state of the steering wheel and these will undesirably be imparted as impact to the locking mechanism upon connection in the new position of the steering wheel.
Moreover, since the adjustable steering wheels are designed for the primary purpose of operator comfort, relatively little thought has been given to the design of adjustable steering wheels for other purposes which will be described below. Thus, for example, a maximum range of adjustability is usually designed into the steering wheel and the associated mechanisms to accommodate operators of all sizes. This maximum range is typically coextensive with the range of movement of the supporting steering column to which, for example, high pressure, flexible, fluid hoses and steering valves are connected for power steering of the vehicle. A problem therefore exists in that the corresponding flexing of the hoses as the steering column moves will cause fatigue which will shorten the life of these hoses. Also, the steering wheel is movable only to finite or discrete positions, thereby limiting the positioning of the wheel.